The No. 1 team in the nation garnered plenty of national accolades in the down period before the BCS championship game, with most of them going to the defensive side of the ball.

And among the LSU defenders, nobody represented the Tigers better in terms of national awards than cornerbacks Morris Claiborne and Tyrann Mathieu.

The duo made history by being the first pair of defensive backs from one team to be first-team All-Americans on The Associated Press' squad, something they strived to do before the season even started.

"(Mathieu and I) set those goals at the beginning of the season to try to be the best," Claiborne said. "Part of what me and Tyrann were talking about was to try to make history, and so far we've been doing a good job of it."

Claiborne swept first-team honors on all five of the All-American lists -- the AP, the coaches, the Football Writers Association of America, the Walter Camp and the Sporting News teams.

Claiborne also took home the Thorpe Award, which goes to the nation's top defensive back, after he intercepted six passes in his junior season.

While Claiborne said the individual accolades are nice, he was sure to credit his teammates for their help.

If Claiborne decides to leave after his junior season, he likely will be a first-round NFL draft pick, which is easy for senior safety Brandon Taylor to see, calling Claiborne "the best defensive back in the country."

The journey to the top for Claiborne took an unusual path. He was being worked out as a wide receiver when he first got to LSU before coaches moved him to cornerback during camp.

Mathieu faced a similarly hard route to being a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, college football's most prestigious award.

Mathieu, a 5-foot-9 dynamo, was only offered scholarships by small regional schools in addition to LSU, something that he used as motivation when he arrived in Baton Rouge.

"I think I went to the camps and lit it up," Mathieu said of his recruiting trips. "It had to be my height or something. I'm not sure."

The New Orleans native and St. Augustine product quickly showed that his height didn't matter.

Mathieu already owns a couple of LSU defensive records two seasons into his college career and was recognized for his performance with the Bednarik Award (top defensive player) and a trip to New York City for the Heisman presentation.

FEELING SNUBBED: Also on the list for postseason awards was freshman punter Brad Wing, who was a first-team AP All-American list and made both the coaches' and AP All-SEC teams.

"I didn't really know the difference between the polls, but they said the AP was a pretty big accomplishment," Wing said. "It's good to be recognized for that. I think ... special teams is very overlooked and very underrated. It's good to get recognition for all the work I put in."

But Wing said it hurt to be left off the list for the Ray Guy Award, which is given to the nation's top punter each season, something he felt he at least deserved to be a finalist for.

"Definitely. It still does, I use it as motivation," Wing said of the snub. "I definitely felt like I had a decent season, good enough to be recognized for it maybe. ... I'll try to get on it next year."

While Wing's average wasn't as high as the finalists, LSU opponents managed only 6 punt return yards off Wing's punts, leaving some to speculate the reason he was left off the list was because he was a freshman.

"If that's the reason I wasn't, then yeah, I think that's a bit unfair," Wing said.

Wing still has a loyal following back in his home country of Australia.

Australian reporter Robert Penfield and a cameraman made the trip from Los Angeles to Baton Rouge on Thursday to get an interview with Wing for Melbourne, Australia's Channel 9.

TIME TO HEAL: Players used some of the extra time off to get their bodies rested and recuperated. Taylor, who sustained a minor injury against Georgia in the SEC championship game, has been taking full advantage.

"I'm feeling very good," he said. "I'm running full speed. I'm just doing extra stretching and getting in the hot tub. I should be 100 percent by next week."